Chief Minister Adam Giles says a last-minute flight from Vietnam to Darwin was not as expensive as reported.

Mr Giles and his party of staff and officials chartered a flight back to Darwin to meet Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Immigration Minister while they were in Darwin last week.

The Chief Minister says the charter did not cost $100,000, as was reported, but still came with a hefty price tag.

"We did spend quite a bit of money ... around $82,000," he said.

"I had to make a decision when I was overseas after receiving information that the Prime Minister was in town," he said.

Mr Giles told ABC radio's Julia Christensen he had been unaware Mr Abbott was arriving in Darwin the day before a welcome home parade for servicemen and women returning from Afghanistan, which was held last Saturday.

He said he had planned to return to Darwin on a flight arriving at 5:15am on the Saturday before learning Mr Abbott would be in Darwin the day before.

"I was flying back ... on an overnight flight to go straight to the welcome home troops parade," he said.

"I had to make a decision when I was overseas after receiving information that the Prime Minister was [going to be] in town," he said.

The charter flight ensured that Mr Giles arrived in Darwin on the Friday.

"[There was] a lot of work that we have been doing with the Immigration and Border Protection Minister Scott Morrison and his department about a new agreement for policing, and also have some conversations with the Prime Minister about [the development of] northern Australia."